Process of and apparatus for drilling oil-wells



R. E. LEUNAHD. iPROCESS of AND APPARATUS Foa ummm@ o|L WELLS. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 9,1920.

Patented Deu. 20, 1921.

ffice/Zar l 750 iff ROY E. LEGNARD, 0F LQS MTGEIMS, ALEURNIL rncoms or ann' 'arranerus non nnrnnrne ornwnnrs.

nonna.

Spee'ieation or Letters Patent. Patemtieol 'Dieta 2&0, T921.

Application tiled March n, 1920. Serial No. 364,745.8.

To all/whom t may/concern Beit 'known that l, Roy E'linonnno, a citizen olf the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles land State of California, have invented a new and useful Process of and Apparatus for Drilling @il-Wells, of which the following is a specilication.

My invention relates to the drilling'oi oil wells, and the principal object of the inven tion is to provide a process and apparatus which will be superior in many particulars to the present methods oflproducin oil wells. There are in use in the United tates two general methods` of drilling which are commonly'lrnown as the standard and the 'rotary system.

ln the standard system, a .cutting blt 1s moved upand down in the well breallnng away the bottom ofthe hole by impact.

ever, have a great'tendency to cave and fdl the hole and it is the regular practice in rotary drilling to maintain a supply of mud' laden Huid in the well. This mud is forced 'by hydrostatic pressure b'aclg into-the softer sands, gravel and rocks encountered in'drilling and servesV to support and consolidate in a wall of the well. lt is, however, circulated' for the purpose' 03E/removing the cut- -ingsofathe bit; the mud 'laden Huid. passing downwardly through the 'drillvpipe and passing-` upwardly outside and around the drill pipe to the surfaceo the ground where with mudladen fluid. v ln myfsystem, howf.

thecuttings or particlesof rook are settled out and the heavy lmud is re-circula'tedthiiugh the drill pipe to the bottom of the we i Theprincipal object of my invention is to provide a inethod offdrilling which' will combine the advantages of both systems, a reciprocatingbit being used in connection eventhe mud laden lfluid is g not circulated andit is not dependedron to remove the cuttings.

Myvsystem has the further great advan tage that pressures may be used inside the i ,well vas when the rotary system is employed.

Further objects and advantages will be made evident hereinafter. A l

Referring to the drawing which is. for illustrative purposes only, Figure 1 (is a view or the upper portion or the well equipped with my invention, a portion of the apparatus used being shown in section to better illustrate the invention.

Fig. 2 is a view of the lower portion of the well.

Fig. 3 is a side' elevation atright angles to F 1g. l.

ln the embodiment or my invention shown 11 is the surface or the ground and 12 is a pit or enlarged opening extending down to a point 13. Situated in the pit 12 is a casing 14, this casing extendingdownwardly Jrom the pit 12 into the well 15 which forms Van extension thereof. At some convenient point well below-the surface of the grounds the driller selects a' shell or a hard formation 16 and sets a packer 17 therein. This' packer is standard in the art and consists of a body of soft rubber brous or plastic matter ory metal 18 which is expandedand forced outwardly to maire a gas tight joint between the casing la, and the walls of the well 15. ing this result are standard in the art and can be readily purchased and the particular construction employed will thereore not be described herein. ln some cases the casing la may be secured by cement in the formationle'.

Secured in the casing 14:, near the bottom obtle pit 12 is a cool; 20 which consists of a o y therein. This plug rits tightly .2l and has a cylindrical opening 23 which .is t e same diameter as" the 'inside off-the casing 14:.. Fastened to the plug 22 is a vlever 24 which may beoperated through a rod 25 from a point above the surface 11 of the ground. By pushing downwardlyon the rod 25 asshown in F ig. 3, the plug 22 may be Many devices capable of produ@ 21 having a tapered plug 22 turnedin the body' rotated through an angle of ninety degrees,

whichl will cause the opening 'in the plug 22 to extend crosswise oi the-casing 14 and comletely shut oil" communication above'and Velow the same. Secured on lthe top of the .casing 14 isa head 30, this head being-removable for purposes which will hereinafter be described. Sliding in the head 30 is a plunger 31, a stuffing box 32 being provided in the head 30 around the plunger 31, to

make a gas tight joint therewith. Passing through the center of the plunger 31 is a wire line 40 which is secured at its lower end in a rope socket 41. The wire line 40 is clamped solidly in the plunger 31 by a screw y eating through a valve 61 with the casing 14 to consolidate it.

vents oil, water or gas from blowing into the above the cock 20 and through a valve 62 with the casing below that cock. A valve 70 allows the pressure in the casing 14 to be relieved.

The method of operation is as follows:

The well having been drilled by standard methods to a point below the formation 16, the packer is set in that formation making a gas tight joint between the formation 16 and the casing 14,.the parts then being as- 4sembled as shown on Fig. 1. The pump 60 is then started pumping water, oil or preferably mud laden fluid into the well. This mud laden fluid preferably consists of 'a heavy clay mixed vto a creamy consistency with water. This fluid is forced downwardly into the well by the pump 60 which is capable of exerting a pressure of from 500 to 1000 poundsl to the square inch and 'is allowed to -pump until it builds up to a predetermined pressure. This pressure is, of course, greatly in excess of thepressure which would be produced by merely allowing thevmud to stand in the well. As a result the mud is forced out into the formation tending to cement it up and to compact and This pressure also prewell unless the pressures of such oil, water or gas vare in'excess of the pressure which canbe pumped upby the pump 60. Pressure having been built up on the well, the bit is reciprocated by means of the cable 40 which is attached through a temper screw,

` not shown, to the walking beam of thewell 31, the rope 40 and1 in vaccordance with standardpractice. l The bit strikes the bottom of the hole cutting it away. l The purposeof the plunger 31 is to provide means'by which the bit may be re-I ciprocated without releasing the pressure on the well. The plunger slides up and down in the stuffing box 32 which 'prevents-pres? sure from relieving itself around the plunger the plunger 31 being made tight by means of the gland cap 43.

If it is desired to withdraw thev tools from the well, the clamp 42 and thev gland 43 are slightlyreleased so that the tools can be drawn upwardly, the. wireline 40 sliding inside the plunger 31 which isstationary. The cock 20 is placed sufficiently low in the well so that the string of tools 'attached to the rope socket 41 may be .pulled up into the space above this cock, which is then closed.

The closing of this cock holds the pressure '20 is at atmospheric pressure, the head 30 may be released from the top of the casing and the rope socket 41 and its attached tools may be withdrawn from the well. During this time, however, pressure is maintained on the well and the formations surrounding it so` that there is no tendency for gas, oil or water to rush-into the well.

lf desired, a standard type of bailer may be secured to the socket 41 which is replaced in the well, the head 30 being again secured. Pressure can then be built up in the `upper part of the casing by closin the-valve 70 and opening the valve 61. gs soon as this is accomplished, the cock 20 may be opened `through the rod 25 and the' bailer can be dropped to the bottom of the well for the purpose of lremoving the cuttings.

llt will be noted that my invention provides means b which pressures may be maintained inside an oil well during the fsure in excess of the hydrostatic pressure produced by a body of Huid filling the well without circulation on the well and reciprocatin a cutting bit in the well.

2. process of drilling oil wells which,A

comprises continuously maintaining a pressure in excess of the hydrostatic pressure produced, by abody of fiuid filling the well without circulationV on the well and operating a cutting bit in thewell.

3. An apparatus for drilling oil wells ims comprising a casing passing through formation above the oil sands; means for` making a gas tight joint between said casing and izo said formation; means for closing the top olf said casing; and means for continuously maintaining a fluid/pressure in'ex'cess of the hydrostatic pressure produced by a body of fluid' filling the well inside said casing.

v 4. An apparatus for drilling oil wells comprising a casing passing through forma-- tion abovethe oil, sands; means for makin a gas tight joint between Said casing an said formation; a wire line extending down-l A wardly into said casing; means for making n a gas tight sliding joint between said wire line and the top of saidcasing; and means for continuously maintaining a Huid pressure in' excess of the hydrostatic pressure produced by a^body of fluid filling the well 'inside said casing.

5. An apparatus for drilling oil wells comprising a casing passing` through formation above the oil sands; means `for making a gas tight joint between lsaid casing and said formation; a wire line extending downwardly into said casing; means for making `a gas tight sliding joint between said wire line and the top of said casing; tools attached to said wire line; a cock in said set my hand at Los Angeles, California,ithis 25 4th day of March 1920.

' ROY ELEONARD. 

